Do you remember the last time you were out dining at a restaurant with your family? How many parents had to whip out their mobile phones or iPads to pacify their crying child or entertain their restless toddler?

You may have witnessed this scene one too many times, or have been in such a situation yourself where you had no choice but to distract your child with a device.

Let’s face it; our children are born into this world with a gadget practically at their fingertips, figuratively and literally.

This has called for a discussion among professionals and parents about the pros and cons of allowing a child to be exposed to technology at such a young age.

However, the American Academy of Paediatrics (AAP) has recently revised its advice to include technology as a valuable component of learning for growing children.

This statement is a huge shift from their previous recommendation, which was a strict two-hour screen time policy for children and teenagers.

The change in positioning from AAP and other professional organisations shows that technology is very much a part of our children’s lives since birth.

Instead of opposing it, we are encouraged to embrace technology and use it for our children’s benefit.

How learning and playing go hand-in-hand with EDUKATE

EDUKATE, an after-school online learning program in Malaysia, is a proponent of combining the best of education and technology for the benefit of school-going children.

To cater to our children, the digital natives who are exposed to technology from day one, EDUKATE infuses both elements of fun and education.

As a result, students are now able to learn via interactive lessons and games that require active participation on the online platform.

Over the years, EDUKATE has focused its efforts on developing educational content that is in accordance with the Malaysian syllabus for English, Science and Mathematics for Standards 4 to 6 students.

The platform was also developed using world-class e-learning technologies used by more than 25 million students worldwide — including those from prestigious institutions such as Cambridge, Oxford and Brigham Young University — and renowned publishers such as Pearson and Harper Collins.

As opposed to unengaging and dull methods such as answering pop quizzes and reading off textbooks, students are instead presented with gamified content such as memory flashcards or football shootouts that allow them to “score” or “win” by answering the questions correctly.

But it’s not all work and play with EDUKATE, as with a digital after-school program, comes a monthly digital report card.

These digital report cards come with a full assessment on six learning areas: Knowledge, Comprehension, Application, Analysis, Synthesis and Evaluation, making it easy for parents to track their children’s learning progress.

The benefits of interactive lessons

Why should we foster online interactive learning for our children? The benefits are aplenty, and they go beyond just purely disseminating educational knowledge, such as:

• Boosting neural activity with engaging content – Gamified and video-based content stimulates multiple senses and encourages motivation within your child. This helps to activate different parts of the neurological system (seeing, doing and hearing), which promotes better comprehension and retention.
• Better learning with flexible learning – Students can choose to learn anytime and anywhere. The content is also broken down into topics, which takes advantage of a student’s attention span by allowing them to focus and maximise the output on topic-based learning.
• Improving strategic thinking and problem-solving – Interactive lessons and gamified content require students to answer on-the-spot when they’re learning. This encourages students to make fast and smart decisions from an early age.
• Promoting computer-literacy from a young age – Computers, tablets and mobile phones to children are like analog phones to us; they were just born into that generation. Instead of shielding them from technology, using technology for educational purposes allows them to get accustomed to it pragmatically, and for the right use.
• Saving both time and money – With interactive learning, students can learn online from the comforts of their home. Gone are the days where you have to shuttle them from one place to another for tuition classes. All you need now is a stable internet connection and a computer, laptop or tablet.

Striking a balance between online and offline activities

It cannot be denied that there are many pros when it comes to online interactive learning.

However, we must not forget to balance digital screen time with other activities to promote all-rounded growth and healthy living for our children.

Here are some recommended tips:

• Encourage them to participate in a sporting activity regularly
• Motivate them to socialise with their friends
• Practise a strict no-gadget policy during meals and dedicated family time
• Keep devices out of their rooms especially during bedtime

EDUKATE’s limited promotion

Being more technologically dependent is not a disadvantage. Let’s acknowledge that when technology is put to good use, such as for education, children are able to reap its benefits.

Sign your child up for EDUKATE today and enjoy a 10% discount with the promo code “FMT”.